deutsche Version

Richard Réti's chess problem




White to move. White can achieve a draw.


The position seems to be favourable for Black. The white king cannot prevent the black pawn reaching the bottom row and becoming a queen. On the other hand, the black king can prevent the white pawn reaching the top row. But there is a solution for White to achieve a draw.

This problem was composed by Richard Réti whose portrait and biography can be found on a stamp page of this website. I think it appeals to mathematicians because it is like "minimal art".


Solution